


The First Step to Infinity

by dudawtty



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/F, Rangshi Week 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:34:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26617537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dudawtty/pseuds/dudawtty
Summary: Rangi takes Kyoshi on a first date, that happens to be in a festival in honor of the Earth Avatar who saved the Fire Nation from derrailing into a civil war.
Relationships: Kyoshi/Rangi (Avatar)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 55





	The First Step to Infinity

**Author's Note:**

> I've put a lot of braincells into this and I'm actually very happy with how it turned out, I hope you like it as much as I do!!

It was hard to get good weather in the Fire Nation during the past few years, Kyoshi was even starting to believe in all of the folklore about the spirit’s rage before she woke up to the sky painted celestial blue. That isn’t the truth, she actually woke up to a pair of golden eyes that shone so hard Kyoshi thought she was in the spirit world.

“Kyoshi, wake up!” Rangi shouted excitedly before her girlfriend could come to her senses over what was happening. “It’s a beautiful day, they are already putting up the lights and decorations for the festival!”

“uhum,” Kyoshi murmured, she closed her eyes again, very aware that she wasn’t getting another minute of sleep.

“Come on, sleepyhead,” The firebender cupped her face in her hands, making Kyoshi look into her eyes. That was a dirty move, she couldn’t say no to those eyes. “This nation has not seen such a sunny day in months, this is a great sign!”

At this point, Kyoshi was already awake and there was no turning back to bed. Why would she bother getting back to sleep when her girlfriend was the only good dream she’d have today anyway ? She couldn’t remember the last time she had seen Rangi this excited.

“Okay, okay,” Were the first coherent words coming out of her mouth this morning. “Let’s go out.”

“Yayyy,” She clapped her hands, reminding Kyoshi of how cute her firebender could be sometimes. “But you need to have breakfast first,” Her tone was threatening and the Avatar knew she wasn’t kidding, her firebender could be very scary sometimes as well.

Rangi got up as her girlfriend stretched the sleep out of her muscles. Soon enough they were walking the hallways towards the kitchen, the firebender sprinting and Kyoshi right on her heels.

As much as the avatar should be a diplomatic figure, Kyoshi struggled with filling that part of her role, she couldn’t stand the Fire Palace's bedroom that burnt red in her eyes. Thanks to that — and probably risking a diplomatic accident —, they were staying in one of the many mansions Jianzhu had left her in the Fire Nation's capital, not really caring about the image they would leave to the court members. Even though the house wasn’t as big as the Yokoya Mansion, it had enough room for all of her companions, a flying-bison and much more.

“Morning, Kyoshi,” Kirima said, she was sitting by the table, Wong, Jinpa and Atuat beside her. “Sifu topknot.” She pretended to bow before Rangi, mocking her as usual.

After all the proper “good mornings” and teasing words were exchanged, they sat at the table with their friends. Although she was just a servent, this were the kinds of mornings she missed back in Yokoya, having everyone she cared about under one roof. No murderous sifus and one-eyed spirits, just inside jokes and easy laughter.

“Did you guys notice how beautiful the sky is today?” Jinpa was the one to bring it up. “I missed the sun.”

“Yeah, that’s actually the reason why I’m up so early.” Kyoshi said, shooting Rangi a funny look.

“We should do something outside for once, enjoy the weather while it lasts.” Wong suggested, gaining aproving sounds from the whole group.

“You guys should go out and enjoy the festival, Kyoshi and I are spending the day in the city,” 

“We are?” She was caught by surprise. Although Kyoshi couldn’t deny she liked the idea, just she and Rangi having a day for themselves at last.

“Yes, we are, I can’t wait to show you all of the most beautiful parts of the celebrations,” Rangi's gaze drifted from her teacup to her girlfriend, love dripping from her eyes. “Although none of them compare to how beautiful you are.”

Kyoshi could feel her cheeks grow hot, she wasn’t sure if it was Rangi's comment or if the other girl was just rising the temperature as a way to tease her. She had an idea of which one was it, though.

“Gross,” Kirima said making a face, although Kyoshi could see the ends of her lips curving upwards. “Anyway, I’m going to the city, pull some scams or whatever.” 

“Well, I guess that’s my cue to leave as well,” Atuat said rising from the table. “I heard there’s a lot of fun in Caldera City, the illicit kind.” And with that she left, her malicious laughter being the only thing left of her in the room.

“Just remember you’re the avatar’s companions,” Rangi shouted at the women who were already out the door. “Behave !”

The firebender knew that even if they had heard her, her words would make absolutely no difference. In the few months they had been in the Fire Nation she grew used to getting the weird team out of their own messes before anyone realized who they were, Kyoshi thanked her for it.

Soon enough all of them made their ways out, leaving Rangi and Kyoshi to discuss their plans for the day.

“Hey, I just came to a crazy realization,” Rangi broke the comfortable silence between them. “This is going to be our first date.” She hugged Kyoshi, who was standing as tall as always before the sink. 

No matter how much Rangi told her she was the Avatar and therefore shouldn’tbe doing the housework, she still couldn’t help herself but to do the dishes.

“Oh shoot, you’re right,” she said with a grin. “I guess between fighting an old, psycho professor and his murderous, revenge-seeking student, there wasn’t much time left in the past two years and a half for an actual date.”

Rangi’s laughter made the day even brighter, if that was possible.

“So, what do you say?” She said, turning Kyoshi around to face her and wrap her arms around the giant’s neck. “Will you bless me with your company on a date , Avatar Kyoshi?”

“Humm, I’ll think about it.” She replied with a fake thinking expression that gained an offended look from Rangi. Kyoshi kissed every part of her offended gaze and mumbled a ”yes” when she got to the girl’s lips.

“What are your plans exactly?” Kyoshi asked, enveloping her girlfriend’s waist as a dumb grin spread across her face. “Because it seems to me that we have a little time before we leave and I’d love to make the best out of that.”

“You would, huh?” Rangi replied with a malicious smile, her hands playing with the other girl’s hair. “Too bad then, we’re leaving right now.” She whispered in the avatar’s ear.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop drastically as Rangi unwrapped herself from her arms, making Kyoshi curse the heavens and hells for her girlfriend’s lack of mercy. 

She sat in the living room, waiting for Rangi, who was getting ready for their day off. Her firebender really wasn’t the one to take a lot of time to leave the house, that fact alone was enough for Kyoshi to give up to her impatience and go check on the girl.

The view the door to their bedroom gave Kyoshi as it cracked open got her to stop dead in her tracks.

Rangi hadn't ever looked so beautiful, she made the casual outfit look like a goddess’s wear. From the pin in her hair to her pale red dress she was stunning. Kyoshi had seen the girl wear much more complex outfits which took her breath away as well, but she never looked this relaxed. She also noted that she had set her bodyguard armor aside, the only times she remembered Rangi without it were when she was sleeping.

“Hey! Rocks for brains, are you there?” Kyoshi was suddenly pulled out of her wonderings by the familiar voice. Rangi had one hand on her shoulder and the other waving in front of her face. 

“Yep, I’m here, I’m fine,” She mumbled, not even sure if the words were really leaving her mouth or if she was still stuck in the daydream, the only thing she was really aware of was the heat in her face.

“Honey, are you really going out to enjoy the day in this?” Rangi pointed at her clothes with one raised eyebrow.

“What’s wrong with my clothes?” 

“You’re wearing your armor,” She sighed, looking frustrated. “Taking that thing off once in a while is okay, you know that, right ?”

“But what if something happens, what if someone-” 

“Kyoshi, we’re in the safest city in the whole Fire Nation,” She laughed. “Besides, I don’t think there’s going to be a psycho on the loose today, maybe even them took a break to appreciate this weather.”

Kyoshi gave her a puzzled look. These interactions were absolutely foreigner to her, Rangi was always the one to be the most cautious out of the duo, to the point where their crewmates made fun of her for it.

“Just loosen up a bit, okay?” The firebender got to her tiptoes to wrap her arms around Kyoshi's neck. “I know this is weird coming from me but today really is a day to celebrate with a little less worries. People must be celebrating what I’m sure they’re going to interpret as the spirits blessing them once again. And they, as i do, will be thanking you for it.”

“Okay then, you convinced me,” She smiled. “I’m keeping my fans though.”

“I’ll take that as a win.” Rangi pecked her lips and led her to stand in front of the closet. “Now let’s get you something lighter to wear.”

After what felt like hours to Kyoshi, they both agreed on a green and white summer dress, its flower pattern made her look absolutely adorable while the fans holding onto her waist scared people enough so they wouldn’t comment on it.

They left the house to be greeted by festival lights, beautiful music and dozens of people dancing in the streets, that certainly was not the kind of thing you saw everyday in the Fire Nation, home to the grumpiest and most hot-headed people in the world.  
Beside her, Rangi couldn’t stop tapping her feet to the rhythm and humming.

“Would you like to dance, m'lady?” Kyoshi asked, exaggeratedly bowing before her girlfriend, painting a smile in the other girl's face.

Before she could realize, the both of them were wrapped in each other and launched ontoo the flood of colors that was the festival, their laughters uniting as if it was their own music, in their own little world. Rangi giggled at Kyoshi's failed attempt of mimicking her moves.

“Here, let’s try this, just follow my lead.” She commanded, extending her arm so her right wrist was parallel to Kyoshi’s, the raw energy between them turning into fire sparks as they touched.

They circled their united wrists, palms up, keeping their gazes locked, falling again inside their own bubble and ignoring the crowd of curious eyes around them. The few seconds their eyes lied in the other’s were enough for a message to be sent through them, Kyoshi knew what Rangi was about to do and she liked the idea of it.

In the blink of an eye, Rangi launched herself backwards into a backflip, the cue for Kyoshi to do the same. It wasn’t long after a circle of fight stances and dance moves that they started using bending.

Kyoshi threw a series of fire fists between them first, – launching them as carefully and warm as possible, with absolutely no intention to hurt the girl – marvelled by the way Rangi dodged each and every flame she produced with graceful pirouettes and flips.

After a last perfect landing, it was Rangi’s time to fire. She started off with a kick, releasing a fire-blade so long Kyoshi felt the warmth of it gently tickle her face. Kyoshi dodged by rolling on her shoulder, rising just in time to meet Rangi’s eyes, brightened by the tender flames. Rangi nodded, a sign that the rough part of the dance was over and everything went alright.

In contrast with the previous moves, they drove to the end of their performance in a slower pace, enjoying every bit of it. They got surprised by the volume of the crowd around them as they finished, Kyoshi didn’t remember this many people in the festival.

“Who would’ve guessed you had such a talent for Fire Nation traditional dance, miss Avatar ?” Rangi elbowed her while they tried to go unnoticed by the mass of people.

“What can I say? My teacher wasn’t that bad.” She said, grinning at the girl beside her who showed her discontentment with a grunt, followed by giggles. 

They were stopped by multiple people on their way out of the multitude, all of them wanting to talk and thank Kyoshi for her services as the Avatar.

If Rangi thought her girlfriend was already a giant, the enormous statue of her said the contrary. In the middle of the street marched the two biggest images she had ever seen, the Avatar, portrayed with a welcoming smile, and the Firelord, with his hand raised to greet his subjects – who looked like nothing more than ants next to it. 

Although it was more than nice to have this recognition, Kyoshi just wanted to enjoy the festival with her girlfriend. Rangi noticed that the girl was starting to be get uncomfortable with all of the unwanted attention.

“Do you want to get out of here?” She shouted over the million voices.

“Yes, please!”

They wandered without a destiny for a while, or at least Kyoshi had thought so, before they got to a little teashop residing in front of the lake. The shop wasn’t anything but really simple, but there was something about it that made it impossible to keep her eyes off of it, Kyoshi couldn’t place her finger on what exactly. 

“I know you’re not a big fan of tea, but this place is the best in the world,” Rangi said, tightening the grip on her hand and pulling Kyoshi through the doors before she could reply. 

The place looked better on the inside, as they marched over the red carpet ornated by golden dragons that streched all the way to the counter, Kyoshi noted that the temperature seemed to get gradually lower. 

“Two jasmine teas and a portion of konashi, please.” Rangi asked the waiter as they settled in a table near the window, being privileged by a marvelous view of the lake and its turtleducks.

“I used to come here all the time with my mom and dad when I was a kid, even before the academy.” Rangi said, sipping her tea. “I don’t know what it is in particular but everything about this place is very special to me.”

“I can imagine how many memories you have here,” Kyoshi smiled through the steam coming out of her cup. “Although it’s hard to imagine Hei-Ran escaping her duties to have some tea and look at cute turtleducks.”

Rangi gave the comment a shy laugh. “She wasn’t so busy before I got to the academy, before dad died,” Her voice wasn’t sad as she said it, on the contrary, it sounded so natural to hear those words even if Rangi didn’t talk much about her father. 

“What was he like?” Kyoshi gathered the guts to ask, not sure if thinking about it would hurt Rangi's feelings.

“He was sweet, he liked helping people and loved to play with me,” She said reflexively, watching the turtleducks outside. “He wasn’t a bender but he teached me everything I know about standing up to those who couldn’t stand up for themselves, about honor and trust.”

“He sounds amazing.” Kyoshi reached out to cover Rangi’s hand with her own. “I’m sure he would be more than proud of the woman you’ve become, because I am.”

“It means a lot to hear that from you, rocks for brains.” She blushed, squeezing Kyoshi’s hand. “Come, I want to show you something.” 

Rangi left the money on the table and got up, walking out of the shop. It was impossible for Kyoshi not to follow her, not just because that would be rude, because their hands were held together so tight they might’ve fused. It made Kyoshi’s heart warm up.

“Have you ever wondered why the Fire Nation is basically a vulcanic island covered in trees?” Rangi asked as they paced around the lake. 

“You know I haven’t,” She laughs in reply. “But let’s pretend I did, why is it?”

Rangi nudged her side before responding. “Because of this very festival,” She said, gaining a confused look from Kyoshi. “As much as I think that you deserve it, this is not a party just for you, it’s the Good Fortune holliday. It doesn’t have an official date, we just celebrate it whenever something really good happens.” 

“I’m sorry, I still don’t see where the forests come in, firecracker.” Kyoshi said, still frowning down at her.

“By the end of the festival, every Fire National plants a tree as a way to thank the spirits for their blessings. Sometimes couples plant three trees in total, one for each and one for their ever-growing love,” She explained. “But you can plant as many as you want, usually people also plant extra ones in the name of loved ones who aren’t between us anymore.”

“That is so beautiful,” The words left a gap between her lips after they were excitedly announced, and her eyes reflected sparks that Rangi knew weren’t just the reflection of dawn. “Can we do it?”

“I was actually going to suggest so,” Rangi said, the mark of a smile in her voice echoed through the lake’s surface. “I’m glad you like the idea, or else I’d have to figure out something to do with these seedlings and the place I’ve reserved.” She opened 

“You did plan out everything, didn’t you?” Kyoshi let out a beautiful laugh and bumped into Rangi, giving her a side-hug and a kiss on the top of her head. “Take me to the place you’ve reserved then, all-mighty sifu.”

“You’re standing on it, rocks for brains!” She announces. “The area near the pond is all ours to plant.”

“Now you’ve really gotten me by surprise,” Kyoshi grinned.

Rangi had her pick a spot for each tree: two for them near the pond, one for Kelsang and one for Rangi’s father closer to the tea shop, one for Lek on the path back to the city center, one for Yun by the forest and the last one for their relationship, in the perfect place by the lake, where the sun shone the hardest so they were sure it would always be healthy and seen.

When they finished it, both of their dresses were ruined by mud – which was easily handled by just a few of Kyoshi’s bending tricks – and the dark had already completely taken over the sky. The lights they could see from afar, coming from the city center, looked like livid, colored pieces of the moon scattered around the landscape.

“We should probably get going,” Rangi was the one to disturb the quiet of the night. “Whatever mess we’re gonna have to take Kirima and the others out of just gets bigger as the seconds pass.”

Kyoshi laughed, Rangi was right. _If we get there too late and they’re already in too much trouble, I’m gonna have to plant their trees by myself,_ Kyoshi thought, _'cuz my girlfriend will be in jail for murder._

She risked one last glance at Rangi, whose face looked even more celestial as the moon caressed her porcelain skin, and tightened the grip around her hand once more, making a silent promise to never let go of it.

Rangi, who was staring at the pond’s dark surface just a second ago, caught her in the act. Before Kyoshi could realize, the girl had thrown her arms over her shoulders and pulled her down to meet her lips. It was soft and tender and everything she had ever dreamed of, like all of their kisses were, it was right.

And there, standing in the dark with no armor, Kyoshi felt the safest she had ever felt in her entire life, knowing that this was the first of countless dates, the first of countless times she would feel that way.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to point out some things:
> 
> First - I got the idea of the dance 100% from that atla book 3 episode, but idk if I wrote it all that well cuz I'm not good with action scenes, so just imagine it was like the atla scene.
> 
> Second - the teashop is absolutely a hideout for the White Lotus and Hei-Ran and Rangi's father were part of the organization of course, but i couldn't find a way to fit it into the story.
> 
> Third - I don't know if referring to their clothes as dresses is right given that the whole universe is based around Asia, but I couldn't find a word that fit there either. So if you know about something that I don't please educated me and I'll change it!
> 
> Fourth - the tree planting festival is actually a thing in Japan so that's where I got the inspiration for it.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for sticking around till here, if you liked it kudos are more than appreciated and comments make my heart glow!


End file.
